filmbore pick of the week - Delicatessen

Delicatessen

Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Marc Caro
Screenplay: Gilles Adrien, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Marc Caro
Starring: Dominique Pinon, Marie-Laure Dougnac, Jean-Claude Dreyfus
Year: 1991
Language: French
UK rental release: April 2002

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Okay, I've been holding off on this one for a long time. I wasn't sure when a good time to deliver my verdict on this piece would be but I couldn't wait any longer. I've already tapped into the exquisite brilliance of Jeunet and Caro in my review of The City Of Lost Children, yet it's time to look at one of the most impressive debut films you will ever see, Delicatessen.

The world has become a desolate place. We're in France, post-Armageddon, where the hopeful currency is cereal crops. And people are starving. Some are resorting to eating anything, including their shoes and even money!

As we enter the butcher's lair, we're greeted with the chilling scrapes of cleaver being sharpened ceremoniously. In in this realm that Monsieur Clapet (Jean-Claude Dreyfus, The Lady And The Duke, The City Of Lost Children) is real artist. As he crafts his blades to a hair's breadth, there's a commotion upstairs.

A resident above in the tenement building is binding himself in paper and tape, hoping to be taken for garbage...it's his only means of escape! This is not to be however as he's caught in his failed camouflage, screaming at the gleaming blade that swoops towards his doomed scalp.

What mysterious wares does Clapet purvey at the delicatessen?

Shortly after, Louison (Dominique Pinon, Amelie, The City Of Lost Children, Micmacs) arrives outside the delicatessen, begrudgingly pushing a broken-down taxi cab that he was meant to be his means of transport. He's arrive at the apartment block to take on the job of superintendent after seeing a newspaper ad. His life, as have countless others, has changed dramatically since the global event, and his days as a circus clown are over. Yet, he still wears his clown shoes. But then again, good shoes are hard to come by.

Soon after he begins his tern as handy-man, he meets the butcher's Julie (Marie-Laure Dougnac, Grossesse Nerveuse, Mo). One of the many neighbours, she's entranced by his entertaining ways but is too shy to say Hi. In time, the nervousness subsides and the pair find a commonality in music: she plays the cello, and he plays the musical saw

Nothing is as it seems though. Julie worries for Louison's life and seeks the assistance for a local rebel fighting force from the sewers, the Troglos. This could be a feeble attempt at heroism however, for Clapet is no ordinary butcher. He specialises in obtaining meat of a unique kind; one for desperate palate. Louison better keep his wits about him.

So here it is - the first feature length equivalent of the powerful partnership discovered between the meeting of Jean-Piere Jeunet and his artistic brethren, Marc Caro. There is a magical genius to be found in this affiliation.

What's important to realise too is that this is the film that also solidified the wonderful cinematic union between Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Dominique Pinon, a brotherhood in movies that still last to this very day. There's an underlying chemistry generated from their collaboration that will mark cinema for decades to come. But let's not rest on just one performer...

Of course, Pinon is sensational as always, gently handling his character of Louison with natural charm and a touch of whimsy and optimism. Yet, there's acting brilliance evident all over this piece, thanks to some well written characters, incredibly executed by a mixed cast, providing a plethora of flavours to add extra filmic tastes for you to relish. Yet, it's Jean-Claude Dreyfus who really elevates the piece. He's magnificent as the butcher Clapet. Twisted, determined and troubled, he's a fine central villain and apt for this unusual world we are presented with.

Although set in almost apocalyptic future you mostly accept this fact as the norm, forgetting the setting and taking in the cultural subtleties that a filmmaker like Jeunet is so deftly capable of.

The colour scheme is rich, deep and inviting...like a dirty gold, or a glistening copper. This template only truly breaks when your screen is painted with the rusted greens and aquas of the basement apartment where resides the Frog Man (Howard Vernon), who constantly floods his lair to attract toads and snails for companionship and sustenance to the sounds of blaring tunes on his battered record player.

I forgot how beautiful the music is in this film too, thanks to some original scoring by Carlo D'Alessio. Not only does it drive the companionship of our two leads but the melodies gracing your surround sound coat the picture in an incandescent sheen.

This is helped by some delicious lens work by another colleague of Jeunet and Caro's Darius Khondji. As Director Of Photography , his work really shines through in this piece. His surrealist approach, unusual angles and brave pans reveal his incredible craftsmanship.

This skill is noticeable in many forms but realised so beautifully while during a staple of Jeunet; the set pieces that he is renowned for. These involve a chain reaction or succession of crazy contraptions, becoming a spine for the oncoming action ahead. Thankfully, in this, his first major feature, these vignettes are just as comical and inventive. They come in the form of the intrepid attempts at elaborate suicides engineered by one of the many excellent support characters, Aurore Interligator (Silvie Laguna). These moments encapsulate each factor that makes Jeunet a great auteur of cinema: comedy, sweeping camera work, intriguing habitats, and array of colourful individuals and a brief but rapidly ascending farce with hilarious circumstances.

Another moment that illustrates Jeunet, Caro and Khondji's excellence is the "bed rhythm" scene (you'll know what I mean when you see it!). This is typical Jeunet - humorous and abstract, while leaping from room to room in this insular world. These methods actually give context and clarity to the surroundings and its many characters. Even the bed springs appear to dance, carrying a persona of their own.

Nevertheless, as light and rambunctious as these moments are there are still chills to be had. For example, Julie's nightmare sequence, brought on by her worry for Louison, is very sinister. There is a underlying tone of dread held throughout, but it doesn't sour the overall aroma.

It's fair to say, taking in this collection of visual and thematic treats, that there really is no other post-apocalyptic film like this. Instead of falling into the usual trap of creating some action thriller, with all parties vying to survive (well..there is a bit of this), it opts to paint a more honest and humane picture, allowing the domestic purity to bleed through its canvas despite the calamitous environment. Relationships. Jokes. Bickering. Biscuits! Even though paired with humanity's uncontrollable cravings for unusual meat, Delicatessen highlights how you might imagine the sweeter realms of a war-drenched world would behave.

Really, in essence, it's a love story, and a quirky one at that. Picturesque, moving, artistic, hilarious...a fine quality Jeunet!

If you want to watch something with a little visual flair you can rarely go wrong with a Jeunet film, especially during the inventive, if sadly brief, cinematic duet he had with Caro. Every shot, pan, zoom and edit is delicately executed to form a giddying presentation. Astounding for a debut picture!

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